Apparatus for edible baked cup-shaped product



Jan. W, 31967 W. TURNER 3,296,956

I APPARATUS FOR EDIBLE BAKED CUP-SHAPED PRODUCT Original Filed May 13,1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. Wesley Turner Attorney Jan, W W67 WTURNER 3,296,956

APPARATUS FOR EDIBLE BAKED CUP-SHAPED PRODUCT INVENTOR.

Wesley Turner g/zm whv m I Afforney United States Patent 1 Claim. (Cl.99-439 The present application is a divisional application of parentapplication Serial No. 367,032, filed May 13, 1964, for Edible BakedCup-Shaped Product and Method and Apparatus for Making Same which is acontinuation-inpart of my patent application for An Edible Article andMethod of Manufacture, Serial No. 143,432, filed October 6, 1961, nowabandoned.

The invention relates generally to food products, and more particularlyto baked products formed from a leavened dough.

A cup-shaped hollow open topped edible product can be filed with varioustypes of complimentary food substances to form a combined food productthat can be hand held and eaten without need for plates, spoons, orother utensils. Articles in this general category are well known in theart, such as ice cream cones and various types of hot dog buns.

The present invention is directed to apparatus from making a productcharacterized by relatively high side walls in relation to a smallerbase diameter. The advantages of such a configuration include easierhandling or grasping by one hand, holding heated foods longer with aminimum reduction in temperature because of the smaller exposed upperarea, and the retention of a substantial quantity of food in arelatively compact easily held product.

In addition to the foregoing, the instant invention is directed toapparatus for a cup-shaped product having suitable structural formretaining properties yet which is not a solid hard crust or waferproduct such as ice cream cones or the like. Rather, the instant cup ischaracterized by relatively thick Walls including an interior portiondefined by a relatively soft large cell noncrusted characteristic. Inthis manner the cup itself becomes a substantial part of the combinedfood product, as opposed to being merely a container for the filler. Itis accordingly important that the thick walls not only be edible butthat they have a palatable taste characteristic, which is in partprovided 'by the relatively soft inner crumb structure.

It will of course be appreciated that a soft crumb material affordslittle if any structural form retaining properties, particularly whenthe cup is filled with food products that may be heated or that includeliquids such as gravies or the like. Accordingly, the instant food cupis formed with a crust on both its inner and exterior surfaces. Thisconfiguration has been found to improve greatly the structuralproperties of the cup, and accordingly various types of fillings, to bedescribed, can be retained for extended periods without causingsoftening or deterioration of the cup structure, even when being held orotherwise manipulated.

The production of a leavened dough cup-shaped food product having theabove characteristics presents certain problems that are not apparent inthe formation of other cups having different configurations andproperties. In particular, the provision of relatively tall side wallsand a smaller base diameter is not readily achieved while maintaining asuitably patable soft inner crumb structure with the above noted innerand outer crusted surfaces. Previous techniques and apparatus when usedin attempting to form the instant product have been foundunsatisfactory. Such teachings tend toproduce a product that ischaracterized by a relatively brittle all-crust wall struc- 3,296,956Patented Jan. 10, 1967 ice ture, or by a wall structure having only anouter crust, and generally by a wall structure having an unsuitableinner soft crumb structure inferior in taste characteristics as comparedto the instant cup.

It is noted that the instant cup can be produced from different types ofleavened dough, including a kneaded type bread dough or a liquid battertype of cake dough. In either case it is important that the doughinclude a chemical leavening agent to provide a rise action during thebaking of the product. Although this rise has been found essential tothe formation of a palatable softer inner crumb structure, it has alsocreated problems in obtaining the required structural properties notedabove. In particular regard to the formation of a cake cup from liquidbatter dough, it has been found that as the dough initially rises in themolds it tends to fix or crust on the mold surfaces and form cracks orfissures. It was necessary to devise a method for remedying thisproblem, since a wall structure having such irregularities is completelyunsatisfactory from the standpoint of the required structuralproperties.

Accordingly, an important object of the present invention is to provideapparatus for making a leavened dough cup-shaped food product, which hasa relatively tall side wall in relation to its base diameter yet whichalso has crusted inner and outer surfaces with an interposed strata of arelatively softer crumb.

Another object of the invention is to provide apparatus for formingleavened dough cup-shaped food products in which the side wall portionthereof is at least partially formed by .rising during a bakingprocedure, in which the raised upwardly extending wall portion is formedwith crusted inner and outer surfaces and with an interposed strata of arelatively softer crumb.

A further object of the present invention is to provide apparatus forproducing a cup-shaped bread product of the type described, which can befilled with a wide variety of foods, including heated foods havingsubstantial moisture content, and which retains its configuration andstructural properties for extended periods of time. In this regard it isnoted that the instant cup when formed from a suitable bread dough canbe filled with hot foods such as chili, beans, beef stew, variouscasseroles, and the like, or cold foods such as tuna fish, deviled egg,etc. As a product formed from a cake batter, the instant cup can befilled with various types of dessert fillings such as ice cream, fruit,or pudding, and moreover can retain liquids such as hot fudge or othersyrups used with desserts. Because the combined product is readily made,and can be hand held without the need for utensils, it is particularlysuit-able for serving at snack bars, drive-ins, schools, buffet dinners,and various outdoor sporting events or the like.

Still another object is to provide apparatus for producing a food cup ofthe type described that can be placed upright on a flat surface such asa table, and which can be kept in such position while filled with any ofthe above foods without having its structure soften or deteriorate so asto cause the cup to tip over and spill.

An even further object is to provide apparatus for making a food cuphaving relatively thick walls which form a substantial part of thecombined filled product, which walls have a highly palatable tastecharacteristic yet which also are characterized by the above notedstructural properties. Further in this regard it is noted that by havinga thick wall with a relatively soft crumb inner strata, the juices fromthe food filler can penetrate into this strata and mix therewith to forma highly palatable mixture between such juices and the cup. It is notedthat the aforesaid inner crust of the cup is important with regard tothe foregoing mixture of filler liquids and the cup, since the innercrust tends to cooperate with the outer crust in preventing softening ordeterioration of the cup walls and bottom, while nevertheless permittingthe juices or liquids to be absorbed partially into the inner soft crumbstrata. Because of the two spaced crust surfaces, the softening of theinner strata is cont-rolled in a manner that prevents deterioration ofthe cup and which enables the juices to be retained for extendedperiods. Also, it is important that the inner crust while havingsuitable rigidity in addition have a more porous characteristic. In thismanner, juices can penetrate somewhat through the inner crust forabsorption by the softer inner strata, yet not soak through the outerless porous crust. In comparison with the instant cup as just described,it has been found that cups formed with an uncrusted inner surface,although otherwise similar, becomes soggy relatively quickly and areclearly inferior to the instant cup as regards the preservation of shapeand structure.

The invention possesses other objects and features of advantage, some ofwhich, with the foregoing, will be set forth in the followingdescription of the preferred form of the invention which is illustratedin the drawings accompanying and forming part of the specification. Itis to be understood, however, that variations in the showing made by thesaid drawings and description may be adopted within the scope of theinvention as set forth in the claims.

Referring to said drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a top plan view, with portions broken away, of a pan moldapparatus formed in accordance with the present invention.

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged fragmentary cross sectional view of thestructure shown in FIGURE 1 taken along the line 2-2 shown therein.

FIGURE 3 is a fragmentary cross sectional view similar to that of FIGURE2 depicting an initial step in a method of the present invention.

FIGURE 4 is a view similar to that of FIGURE 3, depicting a subsequentstep in the aforesaid method.

FIGURE 5 is a view similar to that of FIGURE 4 depicting the final cupproduct as formed in the instant mold apparatus.

FIGURE 6 is a fragmentary cross sectional elevation view of a cupproduct formed in accordance with the present invention.

FIGURE 7 is a fragmentary cross sectional plan view taken along the line77 in FIGURE 6.

FIGURE 8 is a perspective view of the cup product shown in FIGURES 6 and7.

The method of the present invention for producing an edible bakedcup-shaped product, such as an edible cup 11 depicted in FIGURE 8,generally consists in depositing a predetermined quantity of leaveneddough, such as a ball 12 of bread dough as shown in FIGURE 3, into thebottom 13 of a female mold cavity 14 having upwardly diverging sides 16;inserting a cup-shaped male mold 17 axially into the cavity 14 to formtherewith a cupshaped chamber 18 as shown in FIGURE 4 for confiningdough therein and having a chamber bottom 19 and a contiguous upstandingannular upwardly diverging chamber side wall 21; selecting saidpredetermined dough quantity to fill substantially only said chamberbottom 19 as shown for example by the solid line representation inFIGURE 4; including in the dough a chemical leavening agent to provideraising of said dough during baking to fill said chamber side wall 21;placing the molds and dough in a baking environment to provide a bakingof said dough and a rising thereof in the chamber side wall 21; andforming the chamber bottom 19 with a sufficient thickness in relation tothe height and thickness of the chamber side wall 21 so as to provideduring baking a relatively prolonged flow of dough from the chamberbottom into the side wall to augment the rising action of the doughtherein.

Another important feature of the apparatus of the present invention isthe forming of the male mold 17 with a hollow interior 22 and open top23 and the making of provision for an upward circulation of heated airduring baking of the product from around the exterior of the female:mold 14 to the open top interior of the male mold 17 for baking of theinterior wall of the cup. It has been found that this circulation of airis required to form the aforementioned interior crust surface. In orderto economically bake and handle the cup products in commercialquantities a plurality of female mold cavities 22 is provided in a fiatbaking pan 24 which is formed of generally rectangular shape and with adepending peripheral flange 26, see FIGURES l and 2. A grid ironarrangement of sixteen mold cavities is provided in this baking pan,here arranged in a four by four grid. The individual female molds may beformed of sheet metal cups 27, see FIGURE 2, which are seamed, as at 28,at their upper peripheries in openings provided in the pan 24 which maybe similarly formed of sheet metal suitable for baking. It will also beobserved with reference to FIGURE 1 that substantial space is providedbetween each of the cups 27 so as to allow for the free flow of oven aircompletely around the exterior of these cups.

To complete the mold assembly, a top mold pan 31 is formed anddimensioned to overlie the lower pan 24 and is formed with a relativelydeep depending peripheral flange 32 which will surround flange 26 whenthe pans are assembled as illustrated in FIGURES l to 5, so as to firstlocate and guide the pans into proper superimposed assembled relationand to hold the pans in such relation. As in the case of the bottom pan,the top pan is provided with a plurality of cup-shaped male molds 17 andthese are preferably formed as individual sheet metal cups which may beseamed as at 33 into openings provided in the top pan 31 so as to locatethe male cups 17 in precise axial alignment with the female mold cups 27in the assembled position of the pans. As an important feature of thepresent construction the two superimposed pans 24 and 31 are formed witha plurality of registering openings 36 (in the bottom pan 24) and 37 (inthe top pan 31). These registering openings are generally arranged inthe spaces between the internesting cups 17 and 27 and thus provide forthe fiow of heated oven air which would be otherwise trapped below pan24 up through the openings to circulate around and into the hollowinterior 22 of cup 17.

Preferably the top pan 31 is provided with one or more reinforcing bars,such as cross bars 38 and 39 which are secured to the underside of thepan for holding the latter in a flat planar position. Also preferablydrain holes 41 are provided at the four corners of the pans to assist indrawing out after washing of the pans. Also to insure a precise axialalignment of the mold cups, there is provided on the lower pan 24 aplurality of upstanding locating cylinders 42 which are located forentry through a plurality of aligned locating openings 43 in the top pan31. Four of these cylinders and openings are arranged in a quadrangle toinsure a very precise final location of the pans in proper registration.This is most important to insure a dependable uniformity of theresulting baked products. With reference to FIGURES 3 and 4 it will beseen that the pans are first guided into assembled relation by theengagement of the relatively deep depending flange 32 with the outsideof the depending flange 26 provided on the base pan 24. Since theseflanges ex tend around the four sides of the two pans, very littlerelative lateral displacement of the pans can be effected aftertelescoping of the flanges as seen in FIGURE 3. The final and moreprecise location of the pans is effected as openings 43 are threadedover the locating cylinders 42. Preferably the upper extremity of thecylinders are reduced slightly in diameter to assist the initialthreading of the cylinders in the openings.

One of the products of the present invention is a baked bread cup andthe preferred method for its preparation is depicted in FIGURES 3, 4 and5 of the drawings. As will be understood bread dough is normally formedby mixing and kneading flour, water, yeast and salt. These ingredientsare combined usually in a mechanical mixer until the dough assumes asmooth consistency. In this mixing action the water combines with theprotein of the flour to form a plastic gluten which retains the gassubsequently generated in a cellular structure. Conventional bakeryequipment for mixing the ingredients and dispensing measured doughquantities such as the Pan-O-Mat equipment may be used for presentpurposes. Preferably a no-time dough is used, that is one which is takendirectly from the mixing equipment into the proofing step without anintervening fermentation step.

The dough balls 12 are deposited in the bottom of the female mold pans14 and the size of the ball is preferably such as it more or lesscenters itself in the bottom of the pan. Upon assembly of the top panthe base 46 of the male mold 17 engages the top of the doughball 12 anddepresses and extrudes the dough laterally out to the side 16 of thefemale mold and around the base 46 of the core mold 17 so as toessentially fill the bottom 19 of the mold chamber as illustrated insolid lines in FIG- URE 4. The assembled pans and dough are then placedin a proofing box (not shown) maintained at a temperature of about 95 to115 with about 100 being preferred until the dough rises within thechamber side wall 21 to a predetermined height 47 indicated in phantomline in FIGURE 4. Preferably this height 47 represents roughlytwo-thirds of the total desired rise of the dough and its rather precisedetermination in the process of the present invention is important.Accordingly there is provided in a top flat section 48 of the sheetmetal cup 17 rather large circumferentially elongated openings 49 whichregister with the top of the mold chamber side wall 21 so as to permitthe baker to view the upper edge of the proofed dough in the side Wall21 to determine the proper point at which the pans are to be removedfrom the proof box and placed in the oven for baking. Normally theproofing time will run from 50 to 70 minutes depending upon all of thefactors and an average time is about one hour. Preferably the baker isprovided with a gauge stick 51 which he may insert through openings 49for determining the height of the raised dough. By way of example apreferred size of bread cup which has been evolved has approximately thefollowing dimensions as defined by the mold chamber: overall heightabout 2% inches, outside base diameter about 2% inches, outside diameterat the open top of the cup about 3% inches, side wall thickness aboutinch and bottom thickness about /2 inch. In such a cup it is desired toproof the dough in the chamber side wall 21 up to about inch from thetop 48 of the chamber.

After proofing of the dough as aforesaid the assembled pans and raiseddough are placed in an oven for baking. A preferred baking temperaturefor the bread cup product is in the range of 400 F. and 450 F. withapproximately the midpoint of the range, 425 F. being preferred. Bakingtime will run from about 15 to 20 minutes which is sufficient to producea golden brown crust over the full exterior of the cup and a somewhatlighter golden brown crust in the interior of the cup. The inside crumbtemperature Will increase to about 212 by the end of the baking step.

The increased temperature of the product in the oven causes the gasproduction of the yeast to be accelerated and importantly in the presentproduct there is included within the dough a chemical leavening agentwhich is effective in augmenting the gas generation during the bakingstep and which takes over from the yeast action as the latter isexhausted and killed by the increased temperature (over about 140 F.)Preferably a type of chemical leavening agent is selected which isrelatively inactive at the lower temperatures and so produces verylittle action until the dough is placed in the oven. A preferredleavening agent in the case of the bread cup is the combination ofsodium bicarbonate and sodium aluminum phosphate -mono calcium phosphateblend (ACTIF. 8) in the proportions of about 0.7% and 0.8% respectivelyof the total dry mix not including water or yeast. Yeast is included inthe mix in a proportion of about 3% to 3 /2% of the total weight of themix not including water. The quantity of dough and leavening agents areselected to produce a full rise of the product in the mold chamber sidewall during the baking step so that the top of the product will come upto the under side of section 48 of the upper mold pan as illustrated inFIGURE 5 of the drawings. For the size of bread cup above outlined adough ball of about 1% ounces is satisfactory.

During the proofing and baking steps above discussed the confining ofthe dough within the mold chamber effects a crowding compression of thedough with a resulting denser baked structure in the bottom and sidewalls of the cup than in unconfined baked products. There is not only animproved overall density of the material, but there is a progressiveimprovement in density toward the bottom area of the cup. This greaterdensity together with the inner and outer crust structure as abovediscussed provides a cup which will resist the moistening effect ofedible fillers containing a high liquid content during the time the cupis being consumed. The greater density in the bottom of the cup givesgreater moisture resistance at the point in the cup where it is mostneeded. When one of the cups of the present invention is cut in half asdepicted in FIGURE 6 of the drawing it will be observed that the gascells are relatively small and oblong extending lengthwise of the sidewalls.

The bread cup of the present invention will hold liquids such asnormally thickened beef gravy without leaking over an indefinitely longperiod of time. The liquid penetration will normally be up to aboutone-third of the wall thickness thereby leaving a substantial unsoakedwall thickness for affording strength and stability to the breadstructure. As another feature of the present invention, the bottom ofthe cup is given a concave shape, which has several advantages. Thisshape insures the widest possible base support and optimum baking of thebottom corners of the cup for maximum stability, and also lengthens thecorner thickness to afford more room for liquid penetration. Experiencehas shown that in the case of fiat bottomed cups, moisture penetrationcould cause bulging of the bottom and weakness in stability and the cupswould turn over or tip when allowed to stand alone without manual orother auxiliary support. With reference to the drawings, it will be seenthat the bottom concave form of the cup is produced by forming thebottom 53 of the sheet metal cups 27 with an upwardly convex form. Afurther indentation 54 may be formed in the bottom to provide a suitablesymbol or trademark identifying the goods and which will be accordinglybaked into the bottom of the cup.

The combination proofing and baking rise is important and co-functionswith the relative dimensions of the chamber bottom and side walls forreproducing a product of maximum quality. Proofing of the product asabove mentioned for about one hour at about F. affords a desired cellstructure. Proofing at too high a temperature produces too fast gasaction which exhausts the yeast; limits the product rise in the oven;and causes a coarse open cell structure. Similarly, over-proofing causesthe production of larger cells and possible leaking, preventing theattaining of a more compact, dense structure, as above described. In thefinal baking step, the presence of the chemical leavening agentmaterially aids in gas production and contributes to the overall growthof the cup structure. Importantly, the provision of a relatively thickerbase functions as a reservoir in which the central portion of the doughremains cooler thus delaying the yeast kill and maintaining gasproduction in the bottom section to force dough flow from the bottom upthe side walls after gas production in the side walls has ceased. Inthis connection, I have found that a minimum side wall thickness shouldbe in the order of "7 inch. If the side wall is much thinner the doughheats through quickly and the yeast is prematurely killed and relativelyno raising action of the dough from this source is obtained during thebaking action. Also, an adequate wall thickness is required in order toobtain an upfiow of rising dough through the interior of the side wallafter its inner and outer surfaces have baked and stopped growing. Theconcave shape of the bottom and the greater corner dimension therebyprovided assists in obtaining a flow of dough from the bottom reservoiraround the bottom corners and up into the interior of the side Walls.Also it is preferable to round the bottom corner 56 of the male mold 17to assist the dough flow in the chamber around this corner.

Another form of the product 11 of the present invention is to make theproduct from a cake mix as well as a bread mix. In such case, a cakebetter is filled into the bottom of the mold chamber in the identicalmanner of the bread dough and as illustrated in FIGURE 4. However, inthe case of the cake mix, it is preferable that only a chemicalleavening agent be used so that the total rise of the product isobtained during the baking step and no proofing of the product isinvolved. One example of such chemical learvening agent is thecombination of soda and V-90 phosphate included in the cake mix in theproportions of about 0.1% and 0.2%, respectively of the total weight ofthe dry mix. Another example of a suitable chemical leavening agent forthe cake mix product is the combination of soda V-90 phosphate, andVictor cream phosphate included in proportions of about 0.6%, 0.4% and0.4% respectively based upon the total weight of the dry ingredients.

Using mold chamber sizes above outlined, a satisfactory quantity ofliquid cake batter for each cup is about 1 /2 to 1% ounces. Baking ispreferably effected in a somewhat cooler oven than in the case of thebread cup. An oven temperature of approximately 350 is preferred and abaking time of about 20 to 25 minutes is satisfactory.

In the case of the cake cup, the batter dough rises rapidly in contactwith the hot walls of the pan. The dough climbs the side Wall of the panin somewhat of a capillary action due to heat leaving a dip in thecenter which is subsequently filled by the reservoir action of the doughin the chamber bottom. Also there is a tendency of the dough on the hotpan walls to crack and form fissures which must be filled by thesubsequent dough flow in order to obtain a satisfactory product. Thus ifthe side walls are too thin or if the bottom reservoir is insufficientfor present purposes a poor crumb structure and a cracked fissured sidewall results. I have found that by using the chamber dimensions abovegiven that the reserve and delayed flow from the chamber bottom willfill up the interior of the side wall, insure a full desired rise of theside wall, and completely fill and seal off cracks and fissures whichmay have formed at the interior and exterior surfaces of the side wall.

I claim:

Apparatus for making edible baked cup-shaped products comprising, afemale mold including a first generally planar member having a pluralityof spaced cavities formed therein each having downwardly converging sideWalls, a male mold including a generally planar member adapted fordisposition in overlying relation to said first planar member andincluding a plurality of downwardly extending open topped protuberancesadapted for insertion respectively into said cavities, said cavities andprotuberances each respectively defining therebetween a cup-shapedchamber when molds are placed in overlying relation wherein said centralportion of said chamber bottom has a thickness greater than said chamberside Walls and the thickness of said chamber bottom at its outer edge isgreater than said central portion, and said planar members having aplurality of corresponding registering vent holes disposed respectivelybetween said cavities and protuberances, said male mold being providedwith a plurality of gauge openings each disposed above the side wall ofone of said cup-shaped chambers, and said cup-shaped chambers each fullyenclosed except for said gauge openings.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 257,537 5/1882Van Patten 249 1,510,279 9/1924 Huth et a1. 99-430 1,928,391 9/1933Niklason 107-1.1 1,988,906 1/1935 Corte et al. 107l9.2 2,000,676 5/1935Teague 99439 X 2,078,102 4/1937 Siela. 2,961,849 11/1960 Hitchcock10719.4 X

FOREIGN PATENTS 193,286 2/ 1923 Great Britain.

WALTER A. SCHEEL, Primary Examiner.

S. P. FISHER, Assistant Examiner.

